Dog finds man who faked disappearance

AN AMERICAN who staged an elaborate disappearing act five years ago was arrested after being chased down by a police dog while officers were investigating a routine burglary in Cairns.

Kenneth Rodman, 60, has been handed over to immigration officials and is expected to be deported to the US within days after confessing to overstaying his tourist visa by pre- tending to be missing.

R o d m a n had been listed as m i s s i n g since Dec e m b e r 2010, when he was last seen by a friend heading to a beach near Port Douglas with his kayak.

The kayak was found a month later, submerged in waters several kilometres south of where he launched it. Police suspected it had been deliberately sunk because the plugs had been removed.

An investigation into Rodman’s disappearance gleaned unconfirmed sightings in Ingham, Airlie Beach, Sydney, Darwin and even WA.

Rodman, who was in the country on a tourist visa, had not contacted family in the US. On Saturday night a police dog squad investigating a break- in in Cairns spotted Rodman riding a bike near the crime scene.

“He went off into the bush ... the dog found him hiding in the grass,” Far Northern police Acting Detective Inspector Glenn Horan said.

When questioned, Rodman admitted he was an illegal immigrant. He is believed to have been hiding out mostly in North Queensland for the past five years.

“Inquiries led police to believe he was avoiding contact with authorities to stay in Australia, despite his visa expiring,” Acting Insp Horan said.